LAS VEGAS – Budding film star Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and documentary subject Matt Hamill could have used a different script.

Despite being granted the fight he asked for and securing main-event status when a lightweight title fight was scrapped due to injury, “The Ultimate Fighter 3″ cast member Hamill offered little more than a 15-minute sparring session for the former UFC champion.

The slow-paced bout served as the main event of Saturday’s “UFC 130: Rampage vs. Hamill” event, which took place at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand Garden Arena and aired on pay-per-view, Spike TV and Facebook.

It was Hamill who opened up the striking with a few kicks to various levels
Hamill’s first takedown attempt came 30 seconds into the fight, but Jackson proved up to the challenge.

Jackson continued to stalk, and Hamill tasted some of his power early on. Still, the wrestler looked comfortable standing in the pocket as he waited for Jackson to strike. A second takedown attempt from Hamill inside of the two-minute mark also failed, as did a third shortly after.

In the final minute, Hamill fell short on two more half-hearted attempts to take the fight to the floor, and he was bloodied in the lip and blasted in the belly by Jackson’s crisp boxing. Still, Jackson didn’t escape unfazed, and a cut over the right eye created a target for his foe.

Hamill opened with a high kick in the second, and he shot in for a takedown from across the cage moments later, but the move was telegraphed and easily defended. An awkward-looking low-single shot then fell short for Hamill, and Jackson again punished hm with punches.

The pace remained moderate at best, and the crowd voiced their displeasure halfway into the round. Hamill looked out of sorts and unable to adjust his gameplan, and Jackson defended feeble wrestling attacks with powerful boxing and a few stinging knees to the belly.

Hamill looked both exhausted and mentally beaten as the final frame began. Jackson began to fire punches with increasing authority, but they simply didn’t come with enough frequency. Perhaps cautious, perhaps tiring, perhaps unmotivated, Jackson moved forward only in spots. The final bell drew boos from the crowd, and Hamill simply kneeled on the floor, both exhausted and frustrated.

Jackson was granted the victory in an easy-to-score affair, 30-27 across the board, but he did little to show his worth in a potential meeting with current light heavyweight champion Jon Jones.

“I expected him to try to take me down,” Jackson said after the win. “I had him rocked there, but I couldn’t capitalize.

“I wanted to get a knockout for the fans, but I also wanted to make sure I got the win. I wanted to dominate him for saying he was going to break my will. I think I put on a good performance and was ready for him trying to take me down.”

With the win, Jackson (32-8 MMA, 7-2 UFC) has now earned victories in four of his past five outings. Hamill (10-3 MMA, 9-3 UFC) sees a five-fight win streak snapped.

Mir batters Nelson, claimswhitewash win

In the battle for Las Vegas, former heavyweight champion Frank Mir overwhelmed his fellow native Nevadan Roy Nelson in a 15-minute affair.

Nelson opened the fight by bullrushing across the cage, but Mir was prepared for the charge. Standing his opponent up and using the cage for support, Mir began to put on a clinch-striking clinic. A pair of crisp knees from the position landed flush, and the attacks foreshadowed what was soon to come.

A powerful high kick missed over the top for the former belt holder, but Mir continued to pound away with a series of crushing knees form the clinch.

Wobbled, but undeterred, Nelson continued to press in from the outside, and he found some minimal success by pushing away and blasting Mir with right hands. In the final minute, Mir brought the fight to the floor with a beautiful toss, though Nelson defended well and scrambled back to his feet.

In the second, Nelson opened up with his heavy hands, but Mir was again ready to answer, this time with powerful kicks to the body. One minute in, Mir ducked in for a single-leg takedown and brought the fight again to the floor, where he set up in half-mount. Still, Nelson rolled to a knee and returned to his feet.

With Nelson huffing against the cage, Mir wasted little time in pressing in again and dragging his opponent to the canvas. The resilient Nelson refused to quit and worked again to his feet, only to be met by more kicks and knees. The action slowed in the final moments of the round, but it was unquestionably Mir’s frame.

With Nelson fighting on fumes on the final round, Mir moved forward with more knees before taking the action to the floor in a thudding trip takedown. Mir briefly pinned the arm of his foe in a crucifix, but Nelson returned to the feet yet again in an incredible show of heart. A second takedown saw Mir back in top position, where he landed a few short elbows before “Big Country” again climbed back to a standing position.

It didn’t matter.

A tiring, yet effective Mir, took the fight to floor once more, and this time he landed several crushing right hands. Similar to his Junior Dos Santos outing, Nelson somehow made it to the final bell, but there was very little doubt as to who had proven victorious. Mir was awarded the clear-cut victory, 30-27, 30-27 and 30-26.

“Wrestling was my main focus in this camp and I think it worked out well for me tonight,” Mir said about his win. “I’d rate my performance as a seven (out of 10).

“I expected to win the grappling aspect. It went even better than I had a planned. I felt like I was able to win in every aspect of the fight. Roy is really tough, and I’m glad to leave here with the win.”

Towering heavyweights Travis Browne and Stefan Struve were expected to provide fireworks on the evening’s main card, and the clash provided a finish certain to wind up on highlight reels for years to come.

Both fighters came out looking to kickbox, and each found a home for powerful low kicks. Browne also fired several winging shots that his opponent largely avoided, while Struve found more success with straighter blows. Halfway through the round, Browne looked to change the flow of the contest with a successful takedown, but it was in the striking department where he would ultimately prove victorious.

After working back to his feet, Browne took charge of the fight with a one-two that caught Struve’s attention. As the Dutchman tried to leap forward with a knee, Browne countered with a Superman punch to the chin that sent Struve to the canvas. Massive follow-up blows left “Skyscraper” cold with just 49 seconds left in the first round.

“He’s been hit hard before, but I believe I’m the only one to ever put him out like that,” Browne said of the win. “I think I’m now in the mix in the heavyweight division. A few more wins and I think I can find myself in the top-five of this division.”

Unheralded welterweight Rick Story now finds himself in the upper echelon of the UFC’s 170-pound division after knocking off perennial contender Thiago Alves.

It took Story less than 30 seconds to work the fight to the floor, though he could do little with the position before Alves worked back to his feet shortly after. However, Story continued to press the action into the clinch, as Alves was forced to defend against the cage. Referee Kim Winslow separated the pair after one stalemate, but the underdog’s striking was often on par with Alves’ during a few brief firefights.

Alves landed a few crisp power shots in the closing seconds of the frame, but Story appeared unaffected by the blows as he continued to return fire.

Story again pressed in early in the second, and though Alves relented early he did briefly hit the deck twice. Two minutes in, it was Alves who scored a takedown, but Story quickly scrambled up and back to his feet.

Story continued to press in against the cage with an effective (though not necessarily crowd-pleasing) style. Alves did again find a few moments to flurry, but a a checked high kick left him tumbling to his butt, and he was unable to land anything flush.

In the final frame Story opened up a bit on the feet. He paid the price on a few occasions as Alves flashed his potent Muay Thai, but tory also landed his fair share of blows, especially as he finished combinations to the body.

With Story visibly tiring in the final minutes, Alves was finally able to unleash some real potent bombs. Punches and knees flowed freely from the Brazilian, but Story pressed through the attacks and gutted his way to the final bell.

The durability paid off, as Story was awarded a unanimous-decision win, 29-28 on all three cards.

“My goal was to be explosive because I think that’s his kryptonite,” Story said of his strategy. “I wanted to stay on him and let him know that I wasn’t going anywhere.

“I’ve had a lot of hard strikes landed on me and it goes back to my conditioning. My coach, Pat White, puts me in situations in training where I have to deal with adversity and have to deal with having my conditioning tested. I was prepared for everything Thiago brought tonight and the end result is a victory for me.”

With the win, Story (13-3 MMA, 6-1 UFC) has earned six-consecutive octagon victories. Meanwhile, despite a spirited finish, Alves (18-8 MMA, 10-5 UFC) falls to just 1-3 in his past four fights.

Stann impresses again, remains unbeaten at 185 pounds

In the night’s main-card opening contest, U.S. military hero Brian Stann continued his undefeated run at middleweight with an impressive one-sided beatdown of former Sengoku world champion Jorge Santiago

Stann held the center of the cage early, as Santiago circled to the right and looked to strike. The Brazilian dotted Stann’s left eye early, but the “All American” also deposited an off-balance Santiago on the floor early with a straight.

With just under two minutes remaining, Stann landed a clean left hand that sent Santiago tumbling to the floor. Stann pounced to finish, and a flurry of right hands left his opponent’s head bouncing off the canvas. Still, the gritty Santiago survived the onslaught and returned to his feet in the closing seconds

In the second, Santiago looked to change the course of the fight with an early takedown. However, Stann remained upright and continued to stalk with powerful punches and slapping low kicks. Santiago’s legs buckled briefly in the first minute, and a second takdown attempt was equally ineffective.

Santiago continued to press forward, including a nifty spinning backfist, but his looping shots were consistently beaten to the target by the straighter punches of his opponent. A leaping knee was shucked aside easily by Stann, who remained intense and compact as he moved forward.

With both fighters trading in the pocket in the final minute, Stann blasted Santago with a right hand to the temple that left his foe on the floor. A series of pinpoint follow-ups left Herb Dean no choice but to halt the contest with 31 seconds remaining in the frame.

“It was a tremendous honor to fight in front of these fans tonight, and I’m really thankful to Jorge Santiago for being a great opponent,” Stann said after the win. “My game continues to improve, and I am already looking forward to getting back in the gym.”

With the win, former WEC light heavyweight champion Stann (11-3 MMA, 5-2 UFC) has now earned three-straight wins since dropping from 205 pounds. Santiago (23-9 MMA, 1-3 UFC) sees a two-fight win streak snapped and has not tasted victory in the octagon since a June 2006 win over Justin Levens.

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